Types of
Black Holes
Exploring stellar, supermassive and intermediate black holes
Types of Black Holes
Astronomers generally divide black holes into three major categories according to mass: stellar-mass, supermassive and intermediate-mass black holes. Each reveals different extremes of gravity and cosmic evolution.
Stellar Black Holes
When a massive star runs out of fuel, its core collapses and may explode as a supernova. If massive enough, the remnant becomes a stellar black hole.
These objects can range from a few to hundreds of times the Sun’s mass and continue growing through mergers and consuming nearby matter.
Scientists believe the Milky Way may contain millions of stellar black holes.
Supermassive Black Holes
Almost every large galaxy contains a supermassive black hole at its center. These giants hold millions to billions of solar masses.
Sagittarius A* in our galaxy contains about four million solar masses. Others may exceed tens of billions.
Scientists think they grow through accretion, galaxy mergers and black hole collisions.
Intermediate Black Holes
Intermediate black holes may represent the missing link between stellar and supermassive black holes.
They may range from hundreds to hundreds of thousands of solar masses and remain difficult to confirm.
Many may form through repeated mergers inside dense star clusters.
Primordial Black Holes
Scientists theorize primordial black holes may have formed shortly after the Big Bang. Though not yet confirmed, they remain one of cosmology’s most fascinating possibilities.